Chapter 3: An Appropriate Response
Exodus 24:1-8

Ill never forget the time when, as a senior in high school, I walked onto school campus only to see everyone crying all around me. Yearbook in hand, wondering what in the world had happened, with absolutely no tact, I blurted out, "What! Did somebody die or something?" Actually, Mr. Averdesian, my chemistry teacher, was the one who had died. He was my favorite teacher. At that moment I could have crawled out of there like a bug on the ground. That is a great example of an inappropriate response.

Or how about the time at home group, leading worship, the Lord's presence had come among us and there was a great sense of quiet and peace. I was playing a slow, intimate song when all of a sudden I couldn't see a thing. My entire chord chart was white. In shock, in surprise, with inexperience on my side, I stopped playing and shouted "OH man! I need contacts." My girlfriend who had been singing with me whispered under her breath, "quench!" Yes, I had definitely quenched the Spirit. How do you continue after that? I didn't.

I am sure that you also, can think of at least one time when you (or someone like me) interrupted a quiet moment with boisterous noise, jubilant laughter, or emphatic shock. Becoming aware of the situation and circumstances around us allows us to discern the moment and respond accordingly. Just as social events require an appropriate response, the Lord requires the same.

he Ten Commandments and the law were given by the Lord directly to Moses in Chapters 20-23 of Exodus. God's Word, His command, requires a response just as any good lesson requires application. This is the nature of the Lord; He is relational. He speaks to us and waits for our response.

Any relationship, especially a love relationship, requires excellent communication from both parties. It is a reciprocal and appropriate response requiring honed listening skills. An inappropriate response to your spouse, often caused by inattentiveness, would possibly create strife, bickering, and even bitterness. How much more should we make an effort to be attentive to God's speaking? How much more should we respond appropriately to the Lord?

Worship, essentially, is an appropriate response of a created being to his Creator and takes many forms. Again, the key in this lesson is the appropriateness of the response. We should offer a form of worship appropriate to the word spoken to us-the time, the place, the emotion, and the intent of the command. If the Lord commanded the Israelites to put on sackcloth and ashes, it would hardly be appropriate for them to dance and hold a great joyous feast. When the Lord commands us to sing joyfully and fast another time, it would not be appropriate to be in solemnity and solitude.

Please notice that there are various forms of worship. Remembering that our essential definition of worship is an appropriate response, worship is not solely defined as a genre of music. Rather, it is vastly more complex: it is our very calling, our total lifestyle. This principle is beautifully demonstrated in the text of Exodus 24:1-8. Moses' response to the Word of the Lord resulted in rising early in the morning, building an altar, and erecting twelve pillars. Notice that this act of worship did not include any singing or music of any kind.

The concept and symbol of spending time on the mountain becomes more clear as we put it into practice. Moses arose early in the morning-before others were awake and in the quiet and newness of the day. Even in my drive to work which lasts about one hour, I look forward to the opportunity to spend with the Lord in sweet fellowship. It is a time that is free from distractions from people and their needs.

Moses, as the leader of Israel with a large ministry, practiced spending time with the Lord on a regular basis. He realized it was vital to his effectiveness as a leader.

The second component of this response to the Lord's command was to build an altar at the base of the mountain. An altar is a place of sacrifice. In the old covenant lives of bulls, goats, lambs, rams, and turtledoves were given as a requirement of fellowship with the Lord. In the new covenant, the everlasting sacrifice of Christ was given on the cross. All that is asked of believers today is to recognize the fact that our bodies, essentially our lives, no longer belong to us. Rather, the atoning sacrifice (1 John 4:10) of Jesus Christ purchased us.

Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you,
whom you have from God, and you are not your own? For you were bought at a price;
therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
1 Corinthians 6:19-20

I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that you present your
bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable to God, which is your reasonable service. And
do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind,
that you may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of God.
Romans 12:1-2

Oh Saint! Oh Believer in God! Oh Worshipper! When you give to the Lord what was His to begin with, you will find out what is a pleasing and acceptable offering to the Lord. When you consider the blood of Christ and all that He has done, how can you but give your very life and being to Him?

Twelve pillars were then erected as the final aspect of Moses' response. One pillar was erected for each tribe. Often in the stories of the Old Testament, you will see people setting up stones as a memorial or as a remembrance. One of the most vivid stories is found in Joshua 4:1-9 where the Lord commands Joshua and the leaders of the twelve tribes to set up stones to remember that the Lord had stopped the flow of the Jordan so that they might all cross into the good land. Another example is in the covenant between Jacob and Laban in Genesis 3:43-53. These stones in both cases served as a memorial, a witness, and a testimony. It is our testimony that inspires our outpouring of songs of worship, poems of praise, and beautiful exhortations to the brothers and sisters regarding the goodness of the Lord.

We could write 10,000 songs
And create new melodies of praise
We could stand before the congregation
With our arms outstretched and hands raised
If we have not completed primary acts of worship
If we have failed to give what the Lord truly requires
Then all has been in vain, those hours of practice
Fire the band and get rid of all your choirs
God desires something simple and beautiful
God desires something real and true
God wants your life, your time, your testimony
But mostly, God wants all of you

Chapter 2: Be There

Then the Lord said to Moses,
"Come up to Me on the mountain and be
there..."
Exodus 24:12

The Lord is a jealous God who desires to spend time with us alone. Many people have not come into the realization that Jesus truly is our lover, the bridegroom. He seeks to have an intimate relationship with us, just as a husband and wife.

Marriage, Ephesians tells us, is the mystery of the relationship between the Church and Christ (Ephesians 5:32). It is a symbol, although grossly lacking, but serves to demonstrate to us how God the Father desires intimate fellowship with us. Jesus wants to be one with us even as He and the Father are one (John 17:21); so much, that this is His prayer. Paul even quotes God's original intention for marriage in this same chapter of Ephesians:

For this reason a man shall leave his father
and mother and be joined to his wife and the
two shall become one flesh.
Genesis 2:24

In the context of marriage, this word from the Lord may seem harsh. Yet, as believers, we have forgotten that our Bridegroom also left his mother (Luke 2:41-50, Mark 3:33-45, and John 19:25-27) as well as the Father (John 3:16-17, Philippians 2:6-8, and Matthew 27:45-46) so that He could be joined with us.

If Jesus Himself made the sacrifice of leaving his earthly mother-and more than that, had made the choice to be obedient to the Father to die on a cross, then how can we forsake this intimacy? For the first time in eternity, Jesus was separated from the Father on the cross. He endured that, despising the shame, so that He could make the way for us to be one with Him. Oh, that we would forsake mere worldly things to spend time with him alone.

The Song of Solomon is the consummate example of how the Bridegroom calls to us. Many believers acknowledge the fact that Jesus is the Bridegroom and that the Church is the bride simply from their study of Ephesians and Revelation. However, have you ever stopped to consider and grasp this deeper concept of the Lord calling out to you as an individual?

My Beloved spoke, and said to me; "Rise up,
my love, my fair one, and come away."
Song of Solomon 2:10

Notice that this verse does not say, "Our Beloved spoke and said to us the Church, ‘Rise up my loves, my fair ones, and come away." No. This is an individual call. This is a serenade of a lover to his intended. Notice God's call in the text from Exodus: the Lord called to Moses. The Lord calls us by name as an individual. Notice the command: to come up to the mountain and be there. God doesn't ask us to do much; He simply asks us to be available to Him. You can see how Paul exhorted the Romans saying "...present your bodies as a living sacrifice... which is your reasonable service..." (Romans 12:1-2). It's not the top of the scale, reserved only for radical Christians; this giving of ourselves is just reasonable.

When Jesus came to resurrect Lazarus, He spoke out his name when He commanded, "Lazarus come forth!" (John 11:43) He gave the call to the Samaritan woman, simply stating that the Father is seeking those who will worship in spirit and truth (John 4:23-24). This truth means a true reality; that it is really true for me. The Father is calling us out-out of the world to be separated unto Him.

Be still and know that I am God.
Psalm 46:10

Both David the Psalmist and Moses knew that the calling was to be. Moses was not given a command to do, or to complete a task, or to strive to be worthy. Like Moses, God assures us that if we will be obedient enough to simply go up and be in God's presence, all of the rest would come to us. Our call is simply to be available. Our sufficiency does not come from ourselves, rather from Christ (2 Corinthians 3:6). It is when we make ourselves available that God will speak to us.

If we, as those called to facilitate worship in the congregation of the saints, have not spent time in the presence of the Lord, how could we ever expect to bring anyone else there? Oh brother! Oh Sister! Worship is so much more than music. Worship is the ability to be in the presence of the Lord. It is vital in our the walk of all Christians, in the
lives of all true worshippers, to go up to the mountain and be.

I don’t like starting another sermon before finishing the first, but as I’m trying to take a few days off next week I’ve begun work on the February 3, 2008 lectionary texts.

We had such a great discussion with the Christmas Eve text, I thought I’d try some Transfiguration and see what you folks shine the light on (get it...horrible churchy pun).

With just brief study, I’ve got the following ideas flowing.

1) There’s the “mountaintop experience” option. Here’s article that touches on this, calling the mountains “memory sites.” What are some memory sites in your faith lives? Is preaching on warm fuzzy places faithful to Matthew’s intent? Hmm.

2) There’s the “can’t bottle up God” option. I love how Peter tries to set up tents for Jesus, Moses, and Elijah to, perhaps, try to make the good times last. But he learns one can’t bottle up God. As a wise man once said, “God just may be doing a new thing, and God’s new things knock our socks off.”

3) Revelation. In these texts God both seems incredibly close, easy to believe and understand, while also unclear in many ways, still distant and impersonal--so they get it, Jesus is God’s son, but they can’t tell anyone? I’d need to go much deeper into the text, but Flannery O’Connor’s short story “Revelation” always comes to mind when considering these moments.

Ok, those options all seem way simple, quick, and a bit to topic-driven rather than text-driven, but I may just be functioning with unrealistic seminarian idealism. Oh, and the context of the sermon will be two small country churches I’m covering for the day--small congregations, village communities, guest preacher (which I both love and hate).

Comment away!

Exodus 24:12-18

24:12 The LORD said to Moses, "Come up to me on the mountain, and wait there; and I will give you the tablets of stone, with the law and the commandment, which I have written for their instruction." So Moses set out with his assistant Joshua, and Moses went up into the mountain of God. 14 To the elders he had said, "Wait here for us, until we come to you again; for Aaron and Hur are with you; whoever has a dispute may go to them." 15 Then Moses went up on the mountain, and the cloud covered the mountain. 16 The glory of the LORD settled on Mount Sinai, and the cloud covered it for six days; on the seventh day he called to Moses out of the cloud. 17 Now the appearance of the glory of the LORD was like a devouring fire on the top of the mountain in the sight of the people of Israel. 18 Moses entered the cloud, and went up on the mountain. Moses was on the mountain for forty days and forty nights.

Matthew 17:1-9

Six days later, Jesus took with him Peter and James and his brother John and led them up a high mountain, by themselves. 2 And he was transfigured before them, and his face shone like the sun, and his clothes became dazzling white. 3 Suddenly there appeared to them Moses and Elijah, talking with him. 4 Then Peter said to Jesus, "Lord, it is good for us to be here; if you wish, I will make three dwellings here, one for you, one for Moses, and one for Elijah." 5 While he was still speaking, suddenly a bright cloud overshadowed them, and from the cloud a voice said, "This is my Son, the Beloved; with him I am well pleased; listen to him!" 6 When the disciples heard this, they fell to the ground and were overcome by fear. 7 But Jesus came and touched them, saying, "Get up and do not be afraid." 8 And when they looked up, they saw no one except Jesus himself alone. 9 As they were coming down the mountain, Jesus ordered them, "Tell no one about the vision until after the Son of Man has been raised from the dead."

I like how friend Rachel puts it, "every time you comment, an angel gets its wings."
    Photo by Nina Briski.